The leadership team has maintained the good quality of education in the school since the last inspection and ensured that it continues to improve. As headteacher, you have established a new leadership team since the previous inspection. You are not at all complacent about what needs improving. All leaders and teachers are fully aware of their responsibilities. You, senior leaders and the governors hold all staff to account with considerable rigour. Teachers and leaders at all levels are enthusiastic and ambitious. High standards are expected of pupils in both their academic achievement and behaviour. Leaders at all levels have an excellent understanding of the school. You explained to me very clearly the school’s main strengths, as well as the areas that need to be improved. These include: addressing the underperformance in a few subjects, improving academic outcomes; reviewing aspects of the curriculum; and reducing the absence and persistent absence rates for disadvantaged pupils and pupils who have special educational needs and/or disabilities. This means that you are working on the right priorities to improve the school further. Pupils’ comments are very positive about the school. They are happy and consider there to be a strong sense of mutual respect between themselves and staff. Pupils consider that the positive behaviour policy works well and that there are clear rewards and consequences that are consistently used by teachers. You have developed a new pastoral system within the school. Pupils’ comments, particularly from those in key stage 4, are very supportive about how this has improved behaviour even further since the last inspection when it was reported as good. You have developed a highly inclusive culture within the school where pupils feel valued. You celebrate difference and diversity within the pupil body. Pupils report that examples of bullying, including racial and homophobic bullying, are uncommon and are usually dealt with effectively when they do occur. Safeguarding is effective. Leaders and governors have ensured that all safeguarding arrangements are fit for purpose, and records are detailed and of high quality. There are suitable systems in place to check on the recruitment of staff. Staff are trained and regularly updated about how to keep children safe from abuse, sexual exploitation, radicalisation, and extremism. Governors, particularly the safeguarding link governor, regularly review the school’s safeguarding procedures. All governors have received appropriate and up-to-date training. The curriculum prepares pupils well for managing their own safety. Pupils comment that there has been a particular focus on e-safety. Key stage 4 pupils also recognise how they have valued being taught about mental health and suicide awareness. Pupils feel that they are listened to and know who to turn to within the school if they have concerns. Pupils’ feedback, about the academic and pastoral systems, is used regularly to help inform leaders of the strengths and areas to improve within the school. Pupils value being involved in the recruitment of staff. Inspection findings My first key line of enquiry was to evaluate how effectively middle leaders, pastoral and academic, are using data to monitor the progress of all pupil groups across all year groups. This was an area of improvement from the previous inspection report. You and your staff are now using a system for tracking pupils’ attainment and progress in an exemplary manner. The new system allows senior and middle leaders to use data strategically. For example, you are able to match teachers’ skills to key groups of pupils who may be at risk of falling behind, so they can work together. The system also allows you to identify any underperformance effectively. Governors are able to use the data to monitor and challenge you about key groups and a few underperforming subjects. In addition, leaders ensure that the school’s work is checked regularly by appropriately skilled external advisers so that the data is accurate. This means that staff are not at risk of becoming complacent. You have established systems within the school that enable subject leaders to share best practice. Middle leaders are willing to support and challenge each other in an open and transparent way. You have built a culture of continuous improvement. School leaders are taking effective action to address the underperformance of a few subjects at the end of key stage 4. In the past, too many pupils have underperformed in history, geography and drama. As a result of decisive actions taken by you and other senior leaders, the results in geography are expected to improve this year. Some staffing issues within history and drama need to be addressed as the outcomes within these subjects are still below the school’s expectations. Governors are very well informed about these issues and are holding you and other leaders to account. Pupils at this school receive a good and well-rounded education. Leaders have carefully mapped the curriculum to ensure that pupils are receiving their entitlement, following a review of how the school plans and teaches the religious education; personal, social, health and economic education; and the citizenship curriculum. Pupils’ comments are positive about these changes. ‘Drop down’ days and tutor periods provide pupils with good opportunities to debate ageappropriate issues and prepare pupils for the next stage in their education, training or employment. Actions taken by leaders to address the planning and teaching of the religious education curriculum have not yet had time to raise standards in all year groups. This is because religious education is not being taught by teachers that have a secure knowledge of this curriculum. In 2016, the external exclusions of disadvantaged pupils and those who have special educational needs were significantly higher than the national average. External exclusions for these groups have reduced considerably this academic year. Pupils comment on the reward system that was introduced in 2015, and is now fully embedded within the culture of the school, as having a positive impact on reducing exclusions. The opportunity to have a reflective conversation and more robust reintegration meetings have reduced the number of repeat external exclusions. Teachers and pupils have highly effective relationships in all year groups. Through this, behaviour is good and pupils want to learn. Pupils take pride in their work, are self-assured and confident in their abilities and so make good progress overall. Most pupils attend school regularly, although a significant minority of disadvantaged pupils are absent too frequently. Next steps for the school Leaders and those responsible for governance should ensure that: they continue to address the underperformance in subjects such as history and drama, so that pupils achieve in line with, or better than, the highest performing subjects in the school the attendance of disadvantaged pupils improves further so that it is in line with or better than that of all pupils nationally develop a robust system to monitor and evaluate the religious education curriculum so that it matches the very best teaching and learning within the school.